From the 800-square-foot, two-sink salon in a converted house in Fairport to 14,000 square feet over two locations in Pittsford and Webster, the shop has grown physically. But it also went from one stylist — Miller — a receptionist and an assistant, to a specialized crew of 150 and an international reputation.

The salon brings in top talent from New York City and elsewhere to train colorists and stylists in new techniques. And Scott Miller hairdressers are on duty during Fashion Week in New York, Paris and Milan. The salon carries select lines of cosmetics and beauty products: Its Jo Malone line of fragrance isn't available anywhere else in upstate New York and was selected by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (better known as Will and Kate) for their wedding.

Training and experiences that allow employees to work alongside the best in the industry and aspire to be the best themselves are what make the salon a great place to work, according to a range of employees.

Scott Miller has been named one of the best places to work in the Rochester area, according to rankings by WorkplaceDynamics LLC, based on surveys at 76 local workplaces.

In the inaugural Top Workplaces in Rochester rankings by WorkplaceDynamics, Scott Miller was ranked first in the midsize-employer category. For the rankings, WorkplaceDynamics surveyed more than 7,100 workers across the Rochester region at employers with 35 or more employees.

Employees also say the love they feel on the job helps keep them working for years, or decades. Before her Webster clients arrived recently, Danielle Bonnette described a two-year training program she underwent and which she now participates in as an educator/stylist.

"No one cuts hair right out of school in this facility," Bonnette said. Employees begin by washing hair before cuts, washing hair after colorings and blow-drying wet hair. They watch and learn and practice on willing models before they can take on paying clients.

"I call it 'the College of Hair,' " said Bonnette, who goes by "Mya" professionally.

All the standing and working with wet hands doesn't seem to faze employees who have worked at Scott Miller a decade or two or even almost three. Chances to advance abound.

"We get to make people feel beautiful every day. We work for people we couldn't respect more," said Jenna Rossi, a stylist who has been at Scott Miller for 24 years. "There's a sense of community here."

Lisa Hunt, who has worked at Scott Miller as a colorist for 15 years, described training she attended at the salon's expense in New York City recently with another employee and world-renowned hair-coloring experts.

"The training is a huge thing," Hunt said. "You can't put a dollar (value) on the training because it's yours forever."

While the training regimen has evolved, it was an important element of working at Scott Miller right from the beginning. Colorist Mary Tochelli was a teenager fresh from beauty school when she began working with the stylist Scott Miller three weeks after he opened shop. If she had no heads to wash or blow-dry, she'd watch the owner work.

Miller himself trained in Florida, where he met his wife, Helen, a Brooklyn native, and worked in Manhattan for two years before returning to his hometown of Rochester. Employees describe the pair as complementary, loving, quality-loving and approachable.

"Honestly, it's not like going to work," Tochelli said. "I don't think it's about the money. If your employees are happy, it's going to come through" to the clients.

That's exactly the philosophy Scott and Helen Miller shared when they talked about what makes their business tick. "We wanted to attract like-minded people that really value learning and education," Scott Miller said. "If you work with that philosophy, you're not really working. It's an obsession."

"Our job is to help them be as successful, to have as much fun as they can have," added Helen Miller. Part of that is not only tracking sales and repeat requests of workers' clients, but also meeting individually with workers every two weeks and by department once a month. The Millers try to keep the place in a constant state of excitement, whether through star power of visiting trainers or group outings to go bowling.

"Helen and I decided from the beginning to have an environment where everyone was safe and cared for," Scott Miller said.